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Birthmarks

Birthmarks are distinguishing marks that babies are either born with or develop shortly after birth.

What are birthmarks?

Birthmarks are very common. Around one baby in three is either born with or develops one soon afterwards. They affect twice as many girls as boys, vary widely, and may gradually disappear over a few years or stay with you for life, sometimes getting bigger.

Most of the time they’re harmless but occasionally they can signal a specific underlying health problem. They can also cause complications because of where they are, in which case they need to be removed.

You may also want yours removed for cosmetic reasons.

How to tell if you have birthmarks

They can appear anywhere, including inside your body. Although there are many different types of birthmarks that look very different from each other, there are two broad categories.

Vascular

These are abnormal blood vessels under your skin. If they’re pink, red or purple, they’re near the surface. If they’re blue, they’re deeper. Vascular birthmarks can appear anywhere on your body but tend to be more common around your head, face and neck. Common examples include:

Salmon patch (telangiectatic nevus) – Thin, flat, pink or red areas that are caused by expansion of the tiny blood vessels on the back of your neck (stork bites) or face (angel kisses)

Strawberry birthmark (infantile haemangioma) – Raised red marks on any part of your body that appear shortly after birth

Port wine stain (capillary malformation) – Distinctive flat, red or purple marks that can vary in size and are often on one side of your face, chest or back

Pigmented

These are clusters of cells that contain melanin, the skin pigment that makes you tan. They tend to be brown or black but can also be bluish or blue-grey, and may be smooth, flat, raised or wrinkled. These include: